In the National Hockey League (NHL), the Columbus “Blue Jackets” team defeated the Detroit “Red Wings” team on Thursday with Elvi Merzlikina in the goal, and the Latvian goalkeeper won his 100th victory in the league. The “Blue Jackets” were superior with 6-5, but Merzlikin saved 28 of 33 shots in the course of the game, or 84.4% of the shots, and both of the two post-game shots.
This season, Merzlikin has been in goal in 11 games, in which he has achieved six victories, saved 89.1% of shots and allowed an average of 3.61 pucks into his goal per match. On the other hand, in his seven-year NHL career, this was the 255th game and 100th victory in regular championships for the Latvian goalkeeper. He has 11 “dry” wins, an average of 90.1% of shots per game and 3.22 innings allowed.
In Thursday’s game, Adam Fantili scored two goals for the home team, Ivan Provorov, Kent Johnson and Kirill Marchenko had one each, and Zach Werenski and Sean Monaghan had three assists each. Johnson and Marchenko each scored the winning shot in the series.
Columbus “Blue Jackets” – Detroit “Red Wings” game episodes
Lukas Raimonds and Patrick Kane scored 1+1 each in the “Red Wings” team, while James van Riemsdyk, Dylan Larkin and Alex Debrinket each scored a puck in the goal guarded by Merzlikin.
Dean Evason on the Blue Jackets’ win against the Red Wings
“Blue Jackets” head coach Dean Evason praised the team after the victory and pointed out that the Columbus club has a skillful player in goal. However, the coach was not satisfied that the victory was secured only in the post-game shots, and not in regular time.
With 31 points in 27 games, the “Blue Jackets” are in 11th place in the Eastern Conference and will play their next match on Saturday evening Latvian time, when they will meet the Florida “Panthers” team represented by Latvian defenseman Uvja Balinskas.
Florida “Panthers” represented by Balinski experienced a loss in the NHL match on Thursday, which lost to the Nashville “Predators” in overtime. The champion team of the previous two years, “Panthers”, recognized the superiority of their opponents with 1:2, experiencing the fourth loss in a row.
Balinsky played 10 minutes and 30 seconds, of which 37 seconds were in the minority. In statistics, the Latvian defenseman scored one power play, one puck steal and a neutral efficiency ratio.
The Tampa Bay “Lightning” team represented by Zemgus Girgensons experienced a loss in the NHL match on Thursday, losing to the Pittsburgh “Penguins” team with Latvian goalkeeper Artūras Šilova on the bench. “Lightning” lost 3-4, experiencing the second defeat in a row.
Girgenson spent 15 minutes and 38 seconds on the ice in this match, two minutes and four seconds of which he played in the numerical minority. In the time allotted to him, the Latvian forward scored twice on goal, used three power plays, lost the puck once and conceded the only shot, accumulating a neutral efficiency coefficient.
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